Bread & Butter: Sol Food heads to Mill Valley in new year

The owner of Sol Food, the wildly popular Puerto Rican eateries in San Rafael, is opening a restaurant in the spot that formerly was home to Second Breakfast, at 401 Miller Ave., Suite B. The restaurant will have seating for 20, with to-go and delivery options.

This will be the fourth location for Marisol "Sol" Hernandez, who started at the San Rafael Farmers Market before opening her first restaurant on Fourth Street at Lincoln in San Rafael in 2004.

A bigger location opened at 901 Lincoln Ave. in 2007, and in early 2011 she opened La Bodega, a to-go eatery adjacent "the big green place."

And just last month, she opened Conchita Store at 799 Third St., selling home accessories, bath and personal items and gifts. (451-4765; conchitastore.com).

Look for the Mill Valley restaurant, which will be open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, to open in February. Will it be bright green, too? Stay tuned.

Mill Valley resident Dena Cornett took first place in the home chef category in the annual Mole to Die For! Contest at the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts in San Francisco on Nov. 14.

Although mole-making is not in Cornett's cultural background, she has been perfecting her quest for 26 years with the help of her husband, Tony Sannella.

"I am a major chocoholic; once we made a dessert with 42 ounces of it. So when I was served a made-from-a-spice-packet dinner of chicken mole by one of my sister-in-laws years ago and learned it had chocolate in it, I was compelled to learn how to make it myself," she says.

Cornett's entry was quite hit, receiving more than three times more votes than the other contestants.

To learn more about Cornett's mole journey, go to www.thatcornett woman.com.

St. Nick at Nick's Cove

Been good this year? Then head out to the Boat Shack at Nick's Cove at 3 p.m. Dec. 16 to see Santa Claus arrive not by sleigh, but by watership. Enjoy complimentary hot apple cider, hot chocolate and treats while visiting with Santa until 5 p.m., or have your photo taken with Santa.

Bring a donation of canned food for the Marin Food Bank and receive a 15 percent discount on any food or beverage purchase throughout the day. Nick's Cove will also donate 10 percent of all net proceeds from the day's sales to the Marin Food Bank.

The Boat Shack at Nick's Cove Restaurant is at 23240 Highway One in Marshall. Call 663-1033 or go to www.nicks cove.com.

Aquitaine

Michelin-starred chef Laurent Manrique is opening a new wine bar, called Aquitaine, with partners Christopher Condy and Andrew Fidelman, according to Tablehopper. This will be the third wine bar for the Mill Valley resident; he also owns Blanc et Rouge and Rouge et Blanc, all in San Francisco.

Aquitaine will feature wines from the region it's named for, as well as bites from his native Gascony. Aquitaine will be at 175 Sutter St. in San Francisco. Look for it to open in early 2013.

Sweet walk

Mill Valley resident Andrea Nadel's Gourmet Walks is starting up its "Holiday Lights and Chocolate Tours" at 4:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays in December. Some dates are already fully booked so signing up soon is recommended.

The evening tour includes viewings of the Christmas tree and lights in Union Square, Embarcadero Center, the Palace Hotel and Westfield Centre. Cost is $52 and includes seven stops with treats at each stop during the three-hour walk. Call 312-1119 or go to www.gourmetwalks.com.

Novato's Ranch closes

A year after opening, White Rose Ranch in Novato has closed its doors.

"When I opened White Rose Ranch I had 48 customers, now I have 497," chef and owner Susan Lustenberger says. "I love this town and am so lucky to have the clients I have had, the more appropriate term would be friends."

But the demands of cooking for so many customers and spending time with her children were at odds.